Written Answers Nos. 259-274
262. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the provision of a new secondary school for the Malahide and Portmarnock areas of County Dublin, as announced in November 2015; if he has identified locations for these proposed schools; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4638/17]
View answerIn April 2016 applications were invited for the patronage of nine new post-primary schools to be established, six in 2017 and a further three in 2018. The new secondary school for Malahide and Portmarnock opening in 2017 was included in this process.
I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the patronage process has been completed and as I announced on 3rd November 2016 the Patron of this new post-primary is Educate Together. The assessment report and the recommendations of the New Schools Establishment Group are available on my Department's website.
The building project for the new post-primary school to serve the Malahide and Portmarnock school planning areas is included in my Departments current Six Year Construction Programme, announced last November. A suitable site to accommodate this school has been identified and its acquisition is currently being pursued. However, due to commercial sensitivities relating to site acquisitions generally I am not in a position to provide further details at this time.
The school will open as scheduled in September 2017 in suitable interim accommodation pending delivery of the school's permanent building.
263. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the provision of a new secondary school for the Swords area of County Dublin, as announced in November 2015; if he has identified locations for these proposed schools; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4639/17]
View answerIn April 2016 applications were invited for the patronage of nine new post-primary schools to be established, six in 2017 and a further three in 2018. The new post-primary school for the Swords area of Dublin opening in 2017 was included in this process.
I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the patronage process has been completed and as I announced on 3rd November 2016 the Patron of this new post-primary school is Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board. The assessment report and the recommendations of the New Schools Establishment Group are available on my Department's website.
As the Deputy may be aware, the building project for this new post-primary school to serve the Swords school planning area is included on my Departments Six Year Construction Programme 2016-2021. My Department has worked closely with Fingal County Council in respect of this and conveyancing is currently underway in respect of a site for the permanent school accommodation. Due to commercial sensitivities relating to site acquisitions generally I am not in a position to provide further details regarding the permanent location at this time. I can, however, assure the Deputy that the site acquisition process for this school is being advanced by my Department as a priority.
The school will open as scheduled in September 2017 in suitable interim accommodation pending delivery of the permanent school building.
270. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of staff under the aegis of his Department in the clerical officer, staff officer or equivalent grade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4934/17]
View answerAs at 31st December 2016, my Department had the following number of staff in the Clerical Officer, Staff Officer or equivalent grade:
|
- |
Staff Officer |
Clerical Officer |
Temporary Clerical Officer |
Clerical Officer Equivalent |
|
Headcount |
36 |
303 |
22 |
31 |
|
Whole Time Equivalent |
31.7 |
281.32 |
21.5 |
30.6 |
271. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his plans for ending the use of long-term accommodation for homeless families; and the date by which he anticipates doing so. [3757/17]
View answerRebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness fully recognises that the period of time that families spend in emergency hotel accommodation should be minimised. This is reflected in the commitment that, by mid-2017, hotels should only be used in limited circumstances as emergency accommodation for families. Full details and time frames in relation to the range of actions to address family homelessness are set out in Rebuilding Ireland, which is available on the www.rebuildingireland.ie website.
The increases in Rent Supplement and Housing Assistance Payment levels from 1 July 2016 will play an important role in the achievement of this overall objective, in terms of supporting families to remain in rented accommodation. However, where families do find themselves in homelessness situations, there are a range of solutions in place and bring progressed. These include the Housing Agency programme to acquire 1,600 units and the expanded HAP Homeless Pilot Scheme in Dublin, where some 800 homeless HAP tenancies were entered into by end-2016 and a further 1,200 tenancies are targeted for 2017 across the Dublin Region. A rapid-build programme is also in place, with over 350 rapid-build homes advancing at end-2016. My Department engages with the Dublin Region local authorities on a regular and on-going basis in relation to the delivery of these initiatives.
Overall, it is important to note that the significant programme of actions underway has resulted in an estimated 2,700 exits from homelessness being achieved nationally in 2016, a significant increase on the comparable figure of 2,322 in 2015.
272. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the status of the promised update to wind farm planning guidelines; and when he plans to publish updated guidelines. [3774/17]
View answerIn December 2013, my Department published proposed draft revisions to the noise, setback distance and shadow flicker aspects of the 2006 Wind Energy Development Guidelines. These draft revisions proposed:
- the setting of a more stringent day- and night-time noise limit of 40 decibels for future wind energy developments,
- a mandatory minimum setback distance of 500 metres between a wind turbine and the nearest dwelling for amenity considerations, and
- the complete elimination of shadow flicker between wind turbines and neighbouring dwellings.
A public consultation process was also initiated on these proposed draft revisions to the 2006 Wind Energy Development Guidelines, which ran until February 2014. The Department received submissions from 7,500 organisations and members of the public during this public consultation process.
In light of the commitment in the Programme for a Partnership Government to finalise the Guidelines and on - going policy and legal developments in this area, my Department is continuing to advance work on the Guidelines and related matters in conjunction with the Department of Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, in order to bring the various issues to a conclusion as early as possible. I expect to be in a position to make a statement on the matter in the coming weeks, outlining the timelines for implementation of the various elements.
273. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he will consider the project at Lehenaghmore and Lehenaghbeg, Togher, County Cork, for inclusion in the strategic infrastructure grant operated with the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4019/17]
View answerThe aim of the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund is to relieve critical infrastructural blockages to enable the accelerated delivery of housing on key development sites and to improve the economic viability of new housing projects in Dublin and in urban areas with high demand for housing. The €200m Fund will be composed of an Exchequer allocation of €150 million, matched by a €50 million contribution from participating local authorities.
A Call for Proposals under the Fund was issued to local authorities on 26 August 2016, with a closing date for receipt of proposals of 14 October. It was open to all local authorities to apply, with funding to be allocated on the basis of a competitive bid process. Twenty-one local authorities have submitted a total of 74 project applications relating to specific sites or development land areas. Cork County Council have submitted a number of proposals, including Lehenaghmore and Lehenaghbeg, Togher.
The overall total cost of the 74 funding bid applications is approximately €800m, with funding of some €600 million being sought from the Exchequer and local authorities agreeing to fund approximately €200 million as part of their matching fund requirements. It will not be possible to approve all applications, given the scale and value of applications received.
The viability of the applications is currently being examined in detail against the assessment criteria set out in the Call for Proposals, with a focus on the level of funding required and what it might leverage, the number of housing units that could be delivered, their strategic location and speed of delivery, and affordability levels of a proportion of the homes. Following completion of this analysis, I intend to announce successful applications during the first quarter of this year.
274. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the number of families placed in emergency homeless accommodation that have now received their 24-hour Leap cards, per county; the number of families still awaiting Leap cards, per county; when he expects full roll out of this free travel to be in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4059/17]
View answer316. Deputy Jan O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if the action in pillar one of Rebuilding Ireland to provide access to free public transport for family travel and for school journeys for families that are living in homeless accommodation, including hotels, has been implemented; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4519/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 274 and 316 together.
It is recognised that transport costs can be an additional burden upon homeless families residing in hotel accommodation in lieu of an alternative form of emergency accommodation. Accordingly Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan on Housing and Homelessness outlines an initiative to provide access to free public transport for family travel and for school journeys; the initiative is being targeted at homeless families residing in hotel accommodation in the Dublin Region and the Dublin Region Homeless Executive (DRHE) is overseeing the arrangements.
Five separate 24-hour family Leap cards were made available to all homeless families residing in hotels in the Dublin Region during 2016. These cards were to facilitate family days out and were valid for use on all Dublin transport systems. Over 500 families availed of this support.
With regard to free public transport for school journeys, the DRHE is finalising arrangements with the National Transport Authority to allow for leap cards specifically tailored for this initiative and with a view to having the required cards made available shortly.
